Hampton Teacher In Spotlight

Bicouvaris Wins National Honor

April 05, 1989|By ROBERT BECKER Staff Writer

WASHINGTON — The Teacher of the Year had just passed her first course in media relations.

Under the glare of TV lights and surrounded by minicams dueling for position, Mary Bicouvaris, the government-international relations teacher from Bethel High School in Hampton,stood in a room on the 13th floor ofthe National Press Building on Tuesday and fielded question after question from reporters, giving each interviewer the attention and respect that made her famous in the classroom.

"It's a little sad in a way that all teachers are not asked their opinion," the 49-year-old Bicouvaris said, reflecting on the crush of attention that followed her selection as 1989 Teacher of the Year on Tuesday.

"People would be surprised what teachers would offer if you asked them."

Tuesday, people stood patiently in line to listen to the native of Greece who is not only the best teacher in the country but has a personal history that reads like a TV miniseries.

"It's all very exciting and a great honor," said Bicouvaris, who was born in war-torn Greece and came to the United States in 1963 to study at Ohio State University. "I am really looking forward to my duties."

For the next year, Bicouvaris will have the opportunity to share her level-headed and compassionate insights into the art of teaching, as she takes a leave of absence to travel around the country speaking and participating in workshops with many of her 2.5 million colleagues.

The award is sponsored by the Council of Chief State School Officers, Encyclopedia Britannica and Good Housekeeping magazine. Teachers, students, principals and superintendents from each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and American Samoa select their best teachers for the award and they in turn are reviewed, interviewed and judged.

Her duties began Monday in Washington with the first rush of interviews, followed Tuesday morning by an appearance on "Good Morning America" and the formal announcement and news conference.

Today she is scheduled to receive a crystal apple in the Rose Garden of the White House from President Bush.

Asked what she would like to tell the President about education, she said: "I would thank him for his leadership ... And I would like for him to realize _ as well as those around him _ that unless we invest in education to begin with, we are going to be wasting money in remedial programs, penal institutions and welfare programs."

The presidential amounts of attention she received at the Tuesday news conference did not disrupt her straightforward style. Bicouvaris took time to speak with well-wishers and colleagues from Hampton and pose for photos with her family.

She took every opportunity to push her message: Public education is the lifeblood of democracy.

"Public education is what makes America great," Bicouvaris said. "It is the passport out of poverty, ignorance and the unfortunate circumstances of birth.

"The most dangerous misconception about public education is that anyone can afford to abandon it," she added.

At Bethel, Bicouvaris is known for teaching citizenship to her students by sponsoring mock elections and a student-run model United Nations. Her devotion to democratic ideals led her Tuesday to joke that she has threatened "to come back and haunt" any of her pupils who didn't vote.

"I want them to vote, to claim their place in this country," she said.

Bicouvaris' other theme is self-respect. Her reputation for taking students as they are and then demanding their best has won her the affection and loyalty of many of her pupils.

"The kids look up to her as a model," said Don R. Musselman, superintendent of Hampton Public Schools. "They'll do anything for her. A lot of teachers aren't that way."

Bicouvaris gently deflects this praise, focusing on the importance of the profession rather than the individual. She says simply: "I take my role seriously. ... It isn't what I do that's special; it's what I represent that's special."

Her specialness has not been lost on her children. Greg Bicouvaris, a 22-year-old senior sociology and mass communications major at George Mason University in Northern Virginia, said his mother has always set high standards.

"She's always had our respect," he said. "Her discipline has given me a lot of focus. I've always strived to do the best I can."

Bicouvaris, affectionately known by students as "Ms. Bic," came to the United States wanting to be a teacher but almost didn't get the chance. When she applied for her first teaching job 25 years ago she was turned down by at least one school system because she was not a citizen, a requirement for teachers in Virginia. Hampton waived the requirement and hired her and she gained citizenship in 1968.

Instead of being bitter at the initial rejection, she sees her success as illustrative of the American dream.

"That's the American way; that's what makes us great," she said. "There's room for everybody. I've always appreciated that. That's what I try to get my students to appreciate."